Kaine Congratulates Specter

Gov. Tim Kaine, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, is crowing about the newest member of his team.

In a statement, Kaine said he welcomes longtime Republican Sen. Arlen Specter to the Democratic party "with open arms." Specter announced today that after three decades as a Republican, he had come to believe the party has moved too far to the right and will run for reelection in 2010 as a Democrat.

You can read Kaine's full statement, in which he takes Specter's defection as a sign that the Republican party has "lost touch with the American people" here.